Complaints on non-payment of 13th month pay continue

MANILA, Philippines—The deadline for the mandatory payment of 13th month pay has lapsed two weeks ago, but the Department of Labor and Employment (DoLE) continues to receive complaints of non-compliance from workers all over the country, mostly in Metro Manila, Secretary Rosalinda Dimapilis-Baldoz said in a news release.

Because of this, the labor secretary ordered the regional offices to enforce the law.

“We received a lot of calls and complaints, so on December 30, I issued a directive to all our regional directors to report on the extent or the number of complaints from workers about the non-payment of the 13th month pay and on the steps they have undertaken to elicit compliance,” she added.

Baldoz said the number of complaints may have increased because of the Department of Labor and Employment’s (DoLE) intensified information campaign very early in November last year that the 13th month pay is a core labor standard that needs to be complied with.

In Metro Manila, where the bulk of the complaints were received, Baldoz said the labor regional office had already issued special inspection authority to labor inspectors to verify some of the complaints. The regional office has also been applying mediation-conciliation to those cases where the complainants came personally to the DoLE-Metro Manila office.

“Once the complaints are verified and found to be valid, the DoLE-Metro Manila will issue compliance orders to these companies complained of for them to pay the 13th month pay, if its non-payment, or to complete payment if the complaint is under-payment. Because these are individual complaints, it will take a little time, at least a week more for the DoLE-Metro Manila to finish the inspection,” Baldoz explained.

She emphasized, however, that all the complaints will undergo mandatory mediation-conciliation under the 30-day single entry approach (Sena) to all labor cases, one of the DoLE’s reform programs in labor adjudication.

In the Cordillera Administrative Region, assistant regional director Sixto Rodriguez reported that the DoLE has settled 52.38 percent (11 complaints) of all complaints lodged about the non-payment of 13th month pay, while 42.percent (nine complaints) are still undergoing conciliation under the Sena.

In the Caraga region, regional director Ofelia Domingo had reported that the office had received only one complaint and this is being conciliated-mediated.

Three complaints about non-payment of the 13th month pay had been received by the DoLE-Regional Office Ilocos Region, and these are likewise being conciliated-mediated, according to regional director John Jalbuena.

“As early as November, we had already conducted tri-media advocacy enjoining all employers to pay the 13th month. In addition, we were engaged in a year-round advocacy for compliance with general labor standards compliance,” he said.

In Region 9, regional director Ponciano Ligutom reported that he had issued in December 2010 an advisory to provincial offices and had reminded employers of their obligation to pay the 13th month pay.

“I have issued an order to validate and investigate complaints, even anonymous reports, and these will be subjected to conciliation-mediation under the Sena,” Ligutom said.

“I would like to reiterate that it is the obligation of employers under the law, specifically Presidential Decree 851, to pay the 13th month benefit to all workers and employees,” Baldoz said. –INQUIRER.net